What Are NS Records?

NS (Name Server) records specify which DNS servers are authoritative for a domain. They tell the internet where to find the DNS records for your domain.

How Many Do You Need?

Most domains have 2 to 4 nameservers for redundancy. If one goes down, others continue serving DNS queries.

Common Nameserver Providers

Cloudflare — *.ns.cloudflare.com
AWS Route 53 — ns-*.awsdns-*.*
Google Cloud DNS — ns-cloud-*.googledomains.com
GoDaddy — ns*.domaincontrol.com
Namecheap — dns*.registrar-servers.com

What an NS lookup shows

NS (nameserver) records say which servers are authoritative for a domain, meaning the servers that hold its real DNS records. This tool asks Google Public DNS for a domain's NS records.

How to read the results

A healthy domain lists at least two nameservers, ideally on separate networks, so DNS keeps working if one fails.
The names usually reveal the DNS host: ns1.dns-parking.com, *.ns.cloudflare.com, *.awsdns-* and so on.
The nameservers set at your registrar and the NS records inside your DNS zone should match. A mismatch is a common cause of strange, inconsistent behaviour.

When to use it

After changing nameservers at the registrar to move a site, confirm the new ones are being served.
When a site works for you but not for others, check whether some resolvers still return the old nameservers.
Before editing records, make sure you are editing them at the DNS host that is actually in charge.

Nameserver changes are slower than ordinary record edits, often a few hours and occasionally up to 48 hours, because the parent zone and resolver caches must refresh. Track progress with the NS propagation checker, see the registrar details with the WHOIS lookup, or read how to check nameservers for any domain.